Cleaning apparatus



March ,1 44. 1 F, BRECKENRIDGE 2,343,1 3

' CLEANING'APPARATUS Filed April 10, 1941 s Sheets-Sheet 1 FIG. 1. INYENTOR Y FRANK BRECKENRIDGEQ in'roR EY March 7, 1944.

F. BRECKENRIDGE CLEANING APPARATUS Filed April 10, 1941 3 Sheets-Sheet eooooooo ne'ooooooooo a, o o o o o o o o OOO FIG. 5.

FIG. 4

v INVENTOR FRANK BRECKENRIDGE.,

WITNESSES: 2y

3 ATTORNEf March 7, 1944. F. BRECKENl flDGE 2,343,743

CLEANING APPARATUS Filed April 10; 1941 3 Sheets-Sheet 3' WITNESSES: G 6 INVENTOR f I ,FRANK BRECKENRIDGE l ATTOR Y Patented Mar. 7, 1944 r Westinghouse Electric & Manufacturing Company, East Pittsburgh, Pa., a corporation oi vania Pennsyl Application A ril 10, 1941, Serial No. 387,822 (01. 210-449) 2 Claims.

My invention relates to apparatus for cleaning fabrics or the like and has for an object to pro vide improved apparatus of this kind. I A further object of the invention is to provide improved means for removing vitiated fluid from a cleaning machine.

A iurther object of the invention is to provide an improved strainer construction for a cleanin machine which may be readily cleaned and which effectively prevents foreign material carried by the discharged fluid 'from reaching the fluid discharge pump or the drain.

It is a further object of the invention to. provide improved strainer means for a washer having manually-operated means for draining the fluid from the washer in the event of a totally clogged, strainer.

These and other objects are effected by my invention as will be apparent from the following description and claims taken iii-connection with the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this application, in which: a I

Fig. 1 is a vertical sectional view of one form of washing machine constructed and arranged in accordance with the invention;

Fig. 2 is an enlarged vertical sectional view of the strainer construction shown inFig. i;

Fig. 3 is a sectional view of aportion oi the strainer construction taken along the line III-4H of Fig. 4; r

Figs. 4 and 5am sectional views taken, respectively, along the lines IV-IV and V-V of Fig. 2; and A Fig. 6 is a partial view of the rear of the driving mechanism shown in Fig. 1 showing the fluid discharge pump and the control therefor.

Referring now to the drawings, I have shown my invention applied to a washing and spinning machine of the type disclosed in my Patent No. 2,296,257, dated September 22, 1942, and assigned to the assignee of the pret application. This form of washing and sp n v 1 in; machine includes a tub structure it, at least a mrtion of which is generally of frusto c'onical configuration. The forward end of the tub, which is oi relatively large diameter, is provided with an opening ii tor the ingress and egress of the fabrics to be treated. The access opening it is closed by a suitable gasireted door it and the tub structure it is arranged with i s axis inclined from the horizontal and the vertical so that the access opening it laces lcrwardly and upwardly. The tub It is providedwith an outlet or drain opening it in the bottom portion thereof.

Arranged within the tub it a a basket smug.

ture i4 at'least a portion of which is of frustoconical configuration and which closely follows the lines of the tub i0. The basket l4 includes an access opening 55 which registers with the access opening it of the tub and the opposite end of the basket It is dished inwardly to provide a re-entrant wall or dome it. A plurality of vanes ll extend inwardly from the outer wall or the basket M for agitating the fabrics during the washing periods. The basket i4 is perforate throughout a substantial portion thereof, a number of the perforations being shown at 18.

anism l9 includes a driving shaft 22 which is dliV-' .en by a pulley 23 at substantially constant speed.

As the two-speed mechanism it forms no part of the present invention, it has not been shown in detail for the sake of brevity. A suitable twospeed mechanism for a machine of the type dis closed herein is disclosed in my copending appli-' cation, Serial No. 305,512, filed November 21, 1939, and assigned to the assignee of the present application. It will be understood that the mechanism it is adjustable in any suitable manner for efiecting the different speeds for the driven sleeve 25. A motor at is carried, preferably, by

the tub it and drives the pulley 23 at constant speed by means of a pulley 25 and belt 26.

Washing water is admitted to the tub it through a conduit 271 which is connected to a suitable water supply and the delivery of water to the tub it is under control of an electricallyoperated valve Zia connected in the conduit 21.

The admission of water to the tub may be con- 21 is terminated when the float-actuated switch Si is opened in response to the admission of a predetermined amount of water to the tub Ill, all

ing and spinning structure which may be supported in any suitable manner. As shown, the unitary structure is carried bya casing 32 me resilient manner, a plurality of tension springs 33 being supported by the casing 32 and connected to front and rear portions of the unitary structure. The front wall 34 of the casing 32 has thelower portion thereof extending substantially in a vertical plan and an upper portion shown at 35 inclined in a plane substantially normal to the axis of the tub in and basket 14, said inclined portion 35. including an opening 36 which is closed by a cover 31 when the apparatus is not in use. The cover 31 is carried by brackets, one of which is shown at 31a. The brackets 31a are pivoted or hinged to the casing front wall 34. The cover 31 may be swung downwardly to a horizontal position to provide a work shelf at the front of the casing as'disclosed and claimed in the patent of William J. Russell, No. 2,296,295, dated September 22, 1942, and assigned to the assignee of the present invention. The lower vertical portion of the wall 34 is provided with a service opening 36 which is normally closed by a door or cover 39, hinged, as-shown at 40, to the front wall 34 of the casing so that the cover may be swung outwardly. A spring latch (not shown) may be employed for retaining the cover 39 closed as is well understood.

In accordance with my invention, improved means are provided for straining foreign matter from the vitiated cleaning fluid discharged from the tub i through its drain opening [3. My im proved strainer structure will now be described.

The strainer structure is generally shown at 41 in Fig. l, and in detail in Figs.'2 to 5, inclusive. The structure 4| includes a body or fitting 42 having a vertically-extending neck portion 43 which is'secured, by means of screws 44, to the tub structure l0 peripherally of the drain opening 13. The neck portion 43 encloses a verticallyextending passage 45 which communicates with the drain opening l3.

The fitting 42 also includes a forwardly-extending, horizontal portion 46 which is connected to the neck portion 43 and which terminates ad'- jacent the opening 38 formed in the front wall 34 of the casing 32. The forwardly-extending portion 46 of the fitting 42 is defined by top and bottom walls 41 and 48 and side walls 49 and 51'. The recited walls of the horizontally-extending portion 46 define an elongated chamber or sump 50 which communicates with the vertical passage 45 in the neck portion 43. The front end of the .fitting 42 is open, as shown at 52, for the inserconnection. The resilient gasket 56 is carried by a metal insert 59 which is secured in any wellunderstood manner, as by welding, to the front end of the pan 53.

During operation, the pan 53 is maintained within the sump 50 by a spring clamp 6| of the so-called fruit-jar type which compresses the resilient gasket 58. The clamp 6| includes a member 62, one end of which extends across and en- .gages the resilient gasket 58 and the opposite-end of the member 62 is pivotally connected as shown at 63, to a handle member 64. The handle'64 of the clamp 6i is pivoted, as shown at 65, in recesses formed in the respective. top and bottom walls 46 and 48 of the fitting 42. Removal of the pan 53 from the sump 56 for cleaning is effected by manually actuating the handle 64 counterclockwise, as viewed in Fig, 3. After such movement, the member 62 may be swung about its pivotal connection 63 away from and clear of the gasket 58 so that the pan 53 may be withdrawn forwardly through the open end 52 of the sump 50. After cleaning, the pan 53 may be inserted in the sump 50 and the member 62 is then swung about the pivot 63 to the position shown in Fig. '3. The handle or clamping member 64 is then moved to the position shown in Fig. 3. .As

the pivot point 63 passes beyond a line extend- 42 is provided by a flange 55 extending outwardly from the top of the side and end walls of the pan 53. The flange 55 rests upon a ledge 56 which extends into the sump 56 from the side walls 49 and 5|. Preferably, the ledge 56 extendstrans versely along an end wall 51 which forms a part of both the vertical neck portion 43 and the horizontally-extending portion 46. 4 g

The pan 53 is provided at its outer end with a resilient gasket 56 which is engageable with the end 'of the horizontally-extending portion 46 of the fitting 42 and defines therewith a water-tight tween the pan 53 and the walls .48, 49, and 5|,

ing through the center of the clamping member 62 and the pivotal connection 65, the handle member 64 will snap into place, as is well understood. When the pan 53 is assembled to the fitting 42, the resilient gasket will be maintained under compression by the clamping member 62.

The strained fluid passed to the sump 50 through the perforations 54 in the pan 53 is normally removed through an opening 66 formed in the wall member 49 of the fitting 42. Preferably, the outlet 66 is disposed opposite an imperforate portion of the pan 53 in order to prevent elongated objects, such as toothpicks, matches, etc.. from passing through a perforation 54and directly entering the opening 56. In this connection it will be understood that the perforate walls of the pan 53 are closely spaced with respect to corresponding opposing walls of the fitting 42 so that any elongated object which may enter a perforation 54 is restrained by the walls of the fitting 42 and prevented from leaving the pan. Preferably, the flexible conduit 29 which extends to the float switch structure 28 is also connected to a port 61 formed in the wall 51, said port 61 being arranged adjacent an imperforate region of the strainer pan 53 in order to prevent elongated objects from entering the conduit 29.

As the discharge of fluid from the sump 56 is normally through the outlet 56, foreign matter, such as lint, thread, soap curds, etc., would first collect in the strainer pan 53 adjacent its inner imperforate end. I have found that foreign matter collected by the pan,53 distributes itself mainly in the inner end of the pan 53 adjacent the discharge port 66 because the flow of fluid in the sump 50 is towards the discharge port 66. The body of collected matter builds up in the strainer pan 53 with the upper surface of the collected matter inclined downwardly and forwardly, as shown by the broken line 68. Certain fibrous portions of the collected matter extend through the openings in the strainer pan 53 and, if cleaning of the strainer is neglected, such matter may completely fill the space beso that a dam is defined by the collected matter which prevents the passage of water to the outlet port 86. I have indicated at 69 a broken line the collected matter in these spaces are indi-* cated by the broken lines 1| and 12 (see Fig. 3).

It will be apparent fromthe foregoing description that a dam is defined by the collected matter in the region of the sump 58 adjacent the outlet port 66 and may completely prevent the passage of fluid to the outlet port. I have found that this dam will forin before all of the openings in the strainer become completely clogged and that the openings in the front end of the strainer 53 may be open while the openings in the rear end thereof are completely closed.

'In order that the washing fluid remaining in the tub and the sump 50 may be removed when a complete stoppage of the, strainer prevails, I provide a second outlet port 13 adjacent the front end of the fitting 42 and in a side wall 9 thereof. I The port l3 is normally closed by a manually-operated valve 14. A projection or nozzle 15 is provided for directing the washing fluid passed by the valve 14 forwardly into a suitable receptacle which is positioned by the operator adjacent the opening 38 in the casing front 84 which is normally maintained .out of engagement with the belt 26, at which time the pump 8! is inactive. Operation of the pump 8| is effected by moving the belt 26 into engage- 5 ment with the pulley 84 so that the pump 8| wall, or a hose may be slipped over the nozzle 1 15 for the removalof the fluid to a suitable point of discharge. In either event, the tub It and the sump 50 are completely drained of fluid so that the strainer pan 53 may be removed without spillage of relatively large quantities of vitiated water upon the floor of the laundry. The auxiliary outlet port 13 is connected to the sump 56 on the downstream side of the strainer 53 so that fluid conveyed to the house drain through said opening is also strained. Furthermore, I prefer to locate the outlet port 73 opposite an imperforate portion of the pan 53 so 7 that the passage of elongated objects to the port "l3 and the house drain is prevented. The organi'zation of strainer elements which I have disclosed heretofore provides for the location of the port is and valve is at the front of the strainer mechanism where they are accessible to the op; erator.

Preferably, the top wall 56 of the fitting d2 is sloped'upwardly, as shown in Fig. 2, for facilitating the removal of the pan 53,11: being understood that the pan 53 may be tilted upwardly slightly as it is being withdrawn from I the fitting 62. Sloping of the wall dd upwardly also facilitates the insertion of the flange 55 on the ledge 56 when the pan 53 is assembled to the fitting d2.

is driven at substantially constant speed by the motor 24. Movement of the belt 26 into engagement with the pump pulley 84 is effected by a roller 85 carried byan arm 88 which is pivoted at 81 to a suitable support. The arm 86 is movedin clockwise direction by an electro-magnet 88 when the latter is energized and such v movement of the arm 86 effects engagement of the roller 85 with the belt 26 and engagement of the belt 28 with the pump pulley 84. When the electro-magnet is deenergized, the roller returns to the position shown in thedrawings and operation of the pump 8! isterminated. It will be apparent from the foregoing that the pump 8| is driven at subst tially constant speed by the constant speed bet 26 irrespective of whether the washer basket I4 is operated at low speed or high speed, In this connection it will be understood that during operation of a washing machine of the type described, water may be discharged by the pump 8! during both slow and high speed operation of the basket.

From the foregoing description, it will be apparent that I have provided improved apparatus for drainingvitiated cleaning fluid from a cleaning machine and for separating foreign matter, carried in suspension, therefrom prior to the discharge of the fluid from the cleaning machine. It will be understood that my inventipn may be applied to various forms of cleaning machines and that the oblique axis, cylindrical basket type is shown merely by way of example.

While I have shown my invention in but one form, it will be obvious to those skilled in the art that it is not so limited, but is susceptible of various changes and modifications without departing from the spirit thereof, and I desire,

therefore, that only such limitations shall be.

placed thereupon as are specifically set forth in Removal of fluid from the sump 5% through M the outlet port 55 is efiected by a pump ti, the inlet of which ls'connected by means of a con"- duit 82 to the outlet port tit. The pump 3! discharges thefluid through a conduit .83 which extends through the rear of the casing 32 and upwardly to a point above the normal level of the water in the tub it. Accordingly, the pump at is continuously flooded, it being understood that when the tub it contains a charge of water,

a the sump fit and the pump 8! will also be filled "and the conduit 83 partly so. The conduit 83 is adapted to be connected to a suitable point of discharge for the vitiated water, such as a stationary wash tub.

What I claim is: I

1. In cleaning apparatus, the combination of a tub for containing cleaning fluid and haying a drain opening therein, a fitting secured to the tub and having wall members defining a sump for receiving fluid passed through the drain opening, said sump having an inner rear portion arranged adjacent said'drain opening and an outer forward portion extending laterally from beneath the drain opening, and being open at its outer end, a cover for closing the open end of the sump, spring means carried by the fitting and biasing said cover into engagement with the body, a ledge carried by said wall members within the sump, a pan having bottom and side walls and. a flange disposed at the top of the side walls and resting on said ledge, said bottom and sidewalls of the pan having their inner rear portions imperforate and their outer forward portions perforate, said bottom and side walls of the pan being closely spaced, from the wall members of the fitting, said fitting having first and second fluid discharge ports formed in the walls thereof for removing fluid from the downstream side of said pan, said first port being arranged opposite the imperforate region of said'pan adjacent the drain opening and said second port being spaced therefrom and disposed adjacent the open end of the sump, a valve for closing the The pump BI is provided with a driving pulley second port and manually operable for draining the front thereof, a generally horizontal ledge carried by said wall members and disposed in part within said forward portion of the sump, a generally rectangular pan having side walls and a bottom wall, said side walls of the pan having an outwardly-extending flange carried by the ledge, a closure for said access opening and secured to the front side wall of the pan, means for biasing the closure into engagement with the fitting, said side and bottom walls of the pan being spaced from the wall members of the fitting and being imperforate at their inner ends, the outer, forward portions of the side and bottom walls of the pan being perforate, said fitting having a first discharge port for fluid formed in the portion thereof opposite the imperforate portion of the walls of the pan and a second discharge port for fluid formed in the portion thereof adjacent said access opening and a valve memher for closing the second discharge port.

FRANK BRECKENRIDGE. 

